Cookbooks To Savor

Nigella Lawson: FeastWhat cooking, especially for family and loved-ones is all about.

Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee: Eating KoreanI would place this cookbook in my top 10 of all time. The recipes are delicious and each section is packed with the best of Korean home cooking. The stories are wonderful, too. Highly recommend.

Irma S. Rombauer: The Joy of Cooking (not the "All New", the old school one) I don't so much like this for main dish and salad recipes as for baked goods, sauces, and jams. I have my mother's copy, and when I was about 12, my favorite thing to do was to make tea sandwiches from this cookbook. Every weekend I'd make a couple of different kinds until I worked my way through all the spreads and fillings. A good basic cookbook.

On a toasted, halved whole wheat bagel (or wheat toast) spread a layer of creamy peanut butter. Then top that with chopped salted peanuts. (You could use chunky peanut butter but this method is waaay better.)

Boy, I wish I had my camera* to take a photo of tonight's dinner. It was a riot of color from everything that went into it. I had some leftover chicken, some feta, some cukes, some tomatoes...it all was blended with whole wheat couscous to make a light dinner. Couscous is the ultimate 10 minute meal.

Combine the above with the couscous. Serve at once or chill and serve later. Either way, it's good.

*I did look at SLR's this weekend. I looked at the Rebel again and the Sony SLR. Anyone have any experience with the Sony? It's really light. Which is a huge plus. Next up, the ubiquitous-in-the-blog-world Nikon D80.

For a food blogger that's almost as bad as running out of salt and pepper. I mean why bother cooking if it can't be photographed? That's partly why my kids had Happy Meals for dinner.

I have no idea where my camera is. As a result, I couldn't take pictures of our Easter dinner preparations and finished products.

There is no photo of the garlic-rosemary-mustard-crusted pork tenderloin. No photo of the apricot-cognac-glazed ham. No photos of the gratin dauphinois. No photos of the roasted carrots and parsnips with fresh herbs. No photos of the lovely asparagus bread pudding. No photos of the pink layer cake dusted with lightly-toasted coconut.

Maybe it will stay lost and I can finally justify an SLR. It's all part of my master plan slowly coming together...

Our quick lunch today was a savory Matzo Brei. It's the only way Bunny, my four-year-old, will eat eggs...which is fine because in this family, we all love to eat it. This recipe is probably not "traditional," but it works for us.

MATZO BREI

2 sheets of unsalted matzo, soaked in hot water until soft and squeezed

1 small onion, finely diced

a pat of unsalted butter and a glug of olive oil

4 eggs, whipped (add a splash of milk or water if you like)

salt and pepper to taste

Saute onion in butter and oil over medium heat until translucent. Add squeezed matzo and fry until slightly crisp. Pour in eggs. Salt and pepper to taste. Scramble until soft but set (or cook like a frittata making a big "pancake.") I served this with sliced avocado and canteloupe balls on the side. Serves 3-4.

My camera is on the fritz so I don't have pictures of this, but this is one of those (I'm going to say it) "30 minute meals" that my kids love as much as I do. We often have this for lunch, and this makes enough for the girls to nibble on tofu all afternoon long (my girls love to graze).

This is my idea of a quick meal that's healthier, tastier, and maybe even faster than anything you can get from a box of a can.

In a medium bowl, combine peanut sauce, tamari, and maple syrup. Mix well. Add in tofu cubes and toss very gently to coat.

Spray a rimmed baking sheet with non-stick spray. Using a slotted spoon, remove tofu from bowl and place on baking sheet in a single layer. (Set bowl with any extra sauce aside.). Bake for 25 minutes, don't bother to stir or flip the tofu, they will be fine.

Transfer tofu cubes back into bowl with remaining sauce while tofu is hot. Toss briefly. Serve. (You can also skip this step and just serve the tofu straight from the oven.)

I serve this with steamed rice and micro-steamed or stir-fried gai lan or bok choy on the side.

Since Easter is coming up, and since someone just emailed me asking for my fool-proof way to hard-boil eggs, I thought I'd share my method.
Follow the instructions and you can't go wrong. (Cuz nothing is grosser
than eating an egg that has been tinted an alien shade of green-blue
from where the dye seeped through the cracks.)

If you have a surplus of hard boiled eggs, you can do the following:

make deviled eggs (my friend Darlene makes the best deviled eggs.
She adds baby shrimp to the mashed egg yolks before stuffing them. You
can also add a little smoked salmon and chopped fresh dill. Or top with
caviar if you're feeling luxe.)

Make crostini. There is a recipe in the Deborah Madison Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
book that is essentially toasted bread shmeared with black
olive tapenade and then topped with a circle of hard-boiled egg. So
simple, and so good.

Make Salad Niçoise. Sear some tuna steaks. Arrange some boiled waxy
potatoes, crisp-cooked green beans, sliced tomatoes, hard-boiled egg
wedges, and salad greens on a large plate. Scatter with capers, niçoise
olives, and flat-leaf parsley. Top with the tuna steaks. Pass some
mustardy, tarragon vinaigrette. (Or do what I do, and toss each
ingredient [except tuna] with some vinaigrette before arranging on the
plate.

Make egg salad sandwiches. Pass eggs through an egg slicer first
one way, then carefully quarter-turn and slice again. Mass chopped up
egg with mayo and mustard to taste. Squish between slices of toasted
white bread. Or, to be even more decadent, spread one slice with egg
salad and one slice with tuna salad. I grew up eating the tuna and egg
salad sandwiches on light rye from Draeger's Market in Menlo Park, Calif. Yum.

Cooking Gear To Spice Things Up

All-Clad cookwareI use the stainless line. I love it because you can put it in the dishwasher. If you like to cook it is sooo worth it to have quality pots and pans. I recommend buying a set on sale and then filling in extras as you need them. (Watch for sales and specials.)

Cast Iron SkilletPlease get rid of all your teflon-coated non-stick plans and get a cast iron skillet. I use mine for searing meat, poultry, and fish and then finishing off in the oven. In fact, get two cast iron skillets—one large enough to hold two ribeyes and a smaller, fried-egg-sized one for making...well...eggs.

Food ProcessorQuickly slice/shred veggies and cheese, make hummus or other spreads in a snap, and make pie crust without making a mess.

Global KnivesI am partial to the 18 incher. Yep, I like big knives and I cannot lie. If you like to cook (or even if you don't) you deserve to have good knives. At least one.

Instant Hot Water DispenserIf you can't afford to have one built-in, this is a great alternative. It's nice to have boiling water at the push of a button to make tea, instant miso soup, or morning oatmeal for the kidlets.

Microplane Grater/ZesterUse this to grate citrus zest, nutmeg, and cheese. You could get a coarser one, but you don't need to. I have one and I use it for everything.

SilpatSilpat is a silicone mat used for baking. They come in various sizes. Items will not stick to it. It is a must for any home baker.

Stick or Immersion BlenderIt doesn't have to be fancy, but try and get the highest HP you can afford. I use my stick blender (+ attachments) for making salad dressing (weekly), pureeing soups, making babyfood, and whipping cream.